FDA Alters Stance, Has 'Some Concern' About Chemical BPA

FDA Alters Stance, Has 'Some Concern' About Chemical BPA

by

Liz Szabo

Water bottles display tags proclaiming their lack of bisphenol A, a controversial chemical used to harden plastics. (Photo: David McNew / Getty Images)

The Food and Drug Administration today said it
has "some concern" about a ubiquitous, estrogen-like chemical called
BPA, used in consumer products ranging from baby bottles to dental
sealants and the linings of metal cans, but the agency didn't call for
a ban of the chemical or a change in consumer behavior.

That's a subtle, but significant change from the agency's 2008 position, in which the FDA said that BPA is safe.

Although the FDA stopped short of telling
parents to change formulas or throw out old bottles, officials said
they are encouraging manufacturers to stop making baby feeding products
containing BPA. The agency also wants to help manufacturers to find
safer materials to line metal cans of liquid baby formula.

The agency also is looking into ways to expand
its authority to regulate BPA, in case scientists do find definitive
evidence of harm, says Joshua Sharfstein, the FDA's principal deputy
commissioner.

Federal officials say they will continue
studying the issue. The National Institutes of Health is investing $30
million in BPA research, whose results should be available within two
years. Meanwhile, officials offered suggestions for reducing exposure
to BPA, such as not pouring boiling water in plastic bottles, which can
cause BPA to leach out.

Yet some environmentalists were frustrated by the FDA announcement, saying that it gives parents mixed messages.

Sarah Janssen, a scientist with the Natural Resources Defense Council,
says the FDA should have given parents clear instructions to avoid BPA
in food packaging, even as scientists conduct more research. By
expressing concern but not banning the chemical, the FDA is likely to
confuse parents about the best way to protect their children, she says.

While the announcement confirms that "exposure
to BPA in food contact products has not been proven harmful to children
or adults," the council says it is "disappointed that some of the
recommendations are likely to worry consumers and are not well-founded."

Canada has banned BPA in baby bottles, a move
that led the six largest manufacturers - which make more than 90% of
the baby bottles in the USA - to stop using the chemical, says
Sharfstein.

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